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Chumar or Chumur () is a village and the centre of nomadic grazing region located in south-eastern
Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu a ...
, India. It is in Rupshu block, south of the Tso Moriri lake, on the bank of the
Parang River The Parang River (), also called Para River () and Pare Chu () is an upstream tributary of the Sutlej River, that originates in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh and ends in Himachal Pradesh again, but flows through Ladakh and Tibet before do ...
(or ''Pare Chu''), close to Ladakh's border with Tibet. Since 2012, China disputes the border in this area, though the Chumur village itself is undisputed.


Geography

Chumar is along the course of Pare Chu river, close to Ladakh's border with Tibet. The Pare Chu river originates in India's
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...
, flows through Ladakh, and turns southeast near Chumar to flow into what the British called the 'Tsotso district' (now Tsosib Sumkyil Township) in Tibet's
Tsamda County __NOTOC__ Zanda County () or Tsamda County () is a county in the Ngari Prefecture to the extreme west of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Its seat of power is at Tholing, the former capital of the Guge kingdom. Zanda or Tsamda is said to ...
. After flowing there for about 80 miles, Pare Chu reenters Himachal Pradesh again to join the Spiti River. The Chumar settlement itself is in a side valley of Pare Chu, on the bank of a stream, called ''Chumur Tokpo'', that flows down from Mount Shinowu (). There is also a historic Gompa (Buddhist temple) near the village and a Chumur monastery further upstream. Along the course of Pare Chu and its tributary streams, there are numerous pastures and campgrounds utilised by the pastoral nomads of Rupshu. Some of them close to Pare Chu are listed as Sarlale, Takdible, Nirale, Tible, Lemarle and Chepzile. Chepzile is near a small hamlet called
Chepzi Chepzi, also spelt Chabji
which boasts some farmlands. Two tributaries join Pare Chu near the hamlet: the ''Kyumsalung Panglung'' (or simply ''Panglung'') stream from the east, and the ''Chepzilung'' (or simply ''Chepzi'') stream from the west. The Chepzilung originates below the Gya Peak, a key point on the border between
Spiti Spiti (pronounced as Piti in Bhoti language) is a high-altitude region of the Himalayas, located in the north-eastern part of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The name "Spiti" means "The middle land", i.e. the land between Tib ...
(Himachal Pradesh) and Tibet. According to the map drawn by
Frederic Drew Frederick Drew FGS, FRGS (11 August 1836 – 28 October 1891), was an English geologist, who is noted for his geographical study of Kashmir. He worked as a geologist for over a decade in Maharaja Ranbir Singh's government and also served as the ...
, who worked as a geologist in the administration of
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...
, these two tributaries were border rivers of Ladakh in the Chumar area. The notes to the map provided by him state that the subjects of Jammu and Kashmir grazed their cattle in the pasture-lands up to the boundary, while the subjects of Tibet did likewise on their side. (Map 2)


Indian boundary definition

By the time of Indian independence in 1947, the Indians appear to have conceded part of the valley of Chepzilung to the Tibetans. When independent India defined its boundaries in 1954, it also withdrew from the Panglung river to the east of Chepzi, and set the watershed ridge as the boundary. On the Pare Chu river itself, the Indian-defined border is 5 miles south of Chumar, which is approximately 2 miles north of Chepzi. This allows the Tibetan graziers unrestricted access to both the tributary rivers of Pare Chu at Chepzi. The combined effect of these decisions gave the appearance of a "bulge" in Indian territory near the Pare Chu river. The Indian government justified it on the grounds that the Ladakh's inhabitants had traditionally used the grazing lands along Pare Chu right up to Chepzi. The people of Chumar claim to have continued using the farmland and grazing grounds at Chepzi until the recent past. They claim that their access to these lands has been blocked by the People's Liberation Army in recent years. Stanzin Dasal
How China Is Quietly Moving its Borders into India
VICE News, 3 August 2020.
And the local nobility family of Rupshu continue to own the farmland and a palace at Chepzi. Safeena Wani
A Ladakhi royal family fighting Chinese land grab since 1980s
The Federal, 3 July 2020.
The Indian Army has said that the Chepzi grazing grounds were "beyond the Indian borders." But the locals are adamant that the Army does not understand their traditional grazing systems.


Chinese claims

In the 1960 boundary talks with India, China claimed a boundary north of the Indian claim line. However it was still south of the general ridge line running across the Pare Chu valley. By 2012, China was claiming a boundary further north, representing a "bulge" of its own territory, as shown in the United States Office of the Geographer's boundary datasets. (Map 3)


Sino-Indian border dispute

Chumar has been one of the most active areas on the
Line of Actual Control The Line of Actual Control (LAC), in the context of the Sino-Indian border dispute, is a notional demarcation lineAnanth KrishnanLine of Actual Control , India-China: the line of actual contest, 13 June 2020: "In contrast, the alignment of ...
(LAC) in terms of interactions between Chinese and Indian troops. Located 190 km northwest of Zanda, it had long been an area of discomfort for the Chinese troops as, until 2014, Chumar had been one of the relatively few places along the Sino-Indian border where the Chinese had no roads near the LAC. According to Phunchok Stobdan, "In Chumar, China probably wants a straight border from PT (point) 4925 to PT 5318 to bring the Tible-Mane area under its control", in essence removing the bulge along the LAC at Chumar. The Chinese opened up this new front of the border dispute in Chumar in 2012, prior to that, the border here was the International Border and not the Line of Actual Control.PTI
Chinese pitch seven tents in Chumar; stand off continues
The Economic Times, 22 September 2014. "In 2012, the PLA dropped some of its soldiers in this region and dismantled the makeshift storage tents of the Army and ITBP."
As part of the resolution to the
2013 Depsang standoff Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number), the natural number following 12 and preceding 14 * One of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, 2013 Music * 13AD (band), an Indian classic and hard rock band Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ...
, the Indian side agreed to take down some bunkers in Chumar in return for the Chinese withdrawing from the Depsang standoff area. A road from Chumar leads up to the LAC. Along this road near the LAC, there is an Indian post at Point 30R, or known simply as 30R. 30R gets its name from being at a sharp elevation of 30 metres as compared to its surroundings. PLA patrols often come up to 30R. However they are at a tactical disadvantage since vehicles cannot come up to 30R; they have even tried using horses to enter the area. The Chinese have tried constructing a road across 30R, including in 2014 when they claimed they had orders to build a road till Tible, but they have been stopped from doing so by India. During the 2014 standoff here, Chinese troops had also positioned themselves on 30R, and had even heavy machinery with them for road construction. Chinese troops have also been reported to have removed Indian surveillance cameras from the area. The 2014 faceoff at Chumar, which started on 10 September, started days before President Xi visited India and continued even as he was in India. Indian media quoting army source said that nearly 1000 Chinese soldiers had entered Indian territory in the Chumur sector on the day Xi was in India.


Transport

Chumar is connected motarable roads to Rayul Lake nearly 50 km in the north, Hanle nearly 100 km in the east, Tso Moriri nearly 60 km north, Meroo on NH-3 nearly 225 km north. In 2020, construction of a new ~150 km long road linking Chumar in Ladakh to Pooh in
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...
was approved.Modi govt's infra push along China border — 2 new roads, alternate route to Daulat Beg Oldie
The Print, 15 September 2020.


See also

*
Parang River The Parang River (), also called Para River () and Pare Chu () is an upstream tributary of the Sutlej River, that originates in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh and ends in Himachal Pradesh again, but flows through Ladakh and Tibet before do ...
*
List of disputed territories of India There are several disputed territories of India. A territorial dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of land between two or more states or over the possession or control of land by a new state and occupying power after it has co ...
*
Line of Actual Control The Line of Actual Control (LAC), in the context of the Sino-Indian border dispute, is a notional demarcation lineAnanth KrishnanLine of Actual Control , India-China: the line of actual contest, 13 June 2020: "In contrast, the alignment of ...
* Demchok sector *
2013 Depsang standoff Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number), the natural number following 12 and preceding 14 * One of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, 2013 Music * 13AD (band), an Indian classic and hard rock band Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ...


Notes


References


Bibliography

* ** Indian Report: ; ; ; ** Chinese report: ; ; ; * * * * *


Further reading

* *


External links


Article
about the 2014 Chumar confrontation from Sina Military {{Leh district Villages in Nyoma tehsil Borders of Ladakh